I have finally gotten enough time on the new DH Ardents from Maxxis to give a full review. This impressive new tread pattern from Maxxis should be making its way to the public soon. This sample set is the 2.6 3C (run as a front tire) and the 2.4 60a (run as the rear). The test bike was my Ventana El Terremoto 6.0.
Want to get your bike back to that “showroom new” condition? Suzuki Motorcycle Wash is the only way to clean your bike. I am not sure what they put in this stuff, but it is a miracle worker. You can purchase it in a gallon jug or spray bottle at your local Suzuki dealer. I normally pick up the gallon jug and use a spare spray bottle around the house to save a little bit of money.
I took the Ardents up to Pinhoti 2, 3 and 4 up in the north Georgia mountains over the weekend to get some long mile testing in. The Pinhoti’s are known for providing some of the best single track that Georgia can provide. Great tight, twisty downhills with long steep climbs get your heart rate peaked no matter which way you are headed.
I finally got a chance to get the new 29er Ardents from Maxxis mounted the night before I am supposed to be riding the north Georgia mountains. First, these tires go on Stans Flow rims extremely easy. There was no need for tire levers at all.
The guys over at Maxxis sent us some of the 29er Ardents to test along side the DH casing 26er versions we are currently running on the Terremoto. So far, we are extremely impressed with the performance out of the 26er version, and we are excited about getting our hands on the 29er set.
Thule Sweden bought the T2 design when they acquired Sportwerks. When this buy out was completed, Thule owned the patents to the best rack design on the market. With a couple of Thule “tweaks”, the rack became what it is today. The main design stayed the same, but the addition of adjustable rails, locking arms and replaceable straps gave the rack the Thule quality with the trusted Sportwerks design.
The hits just keep on coming from Rock Shox/SRAM and it is starting to look like a huge year for the RS line. It also appears that SRAM is paying very close attention to what their end users are asking for. These new Reba’s will also be using the new 46mm offset. This Reba line answers all of the requests that 29er and 26er riders have been asking for all year long. Very exciting news…
Now, these measurements will vary slightly depending on rim choice. My 2.6 is measuring out smaller on the 5.1d (27.8mm wide) than it would on an 823 (30mm wide). The rear 2.4 width on the 823 is pretty close to what you should find on most DH rims. The full labeled production versions should be very close to this set.
For all of the Cannondale riders, this is not new information because your bikes have been running this system for awhile. The BB30 standard (Cannondale calls it SI – System Integrated) integrates the bottom bracket bearings into the frame via a press fit.
Singletrackworld.com posted up a really cool video of the MX200 rear shock from Magura in action. After taking all the air out of it, we were able to get it to compress slowly so’s you could get a look. See how the rubber bladder folds over itself as it compresses.